RADIOACTIVE NEWS SAJR August 2013 Vol. 17 No. 3 119 RSSA cone beam CT workshop D Wagenfeld ENT specialist in private practice, Somerset West A cone beam CT (CBCT) workshop was held at the Investec Auditorium in Cape Town on 1 June 2013. The technique has been around for some time, but its use has been largely limited to dental and maxillofacial practices; its wider applications have not been embraced as yet by the radiological and medical fraternity at large. The workshop addressed this hiatus in a most informative way. Over 60 professionals attended the day-long course, including radiologists, radiographers, dentists, maxillofacial surgeons, dental specialists and ENT surgeons, with Professor Curly Nortje introducing the topic, with a review of the principles of panoramic radiography. Thereafter, most of the presentations were given by the visiting faculty, Dr Dale Miles from Arizona, whose wide experience brought the subject to life for the delegates. He explained the basic principles, then outlined the various applications by specific examples ranging from dental conditions, through soft-tissue images in the head and neck, to the most detailed micro-imaging of the temporal bone structures. The possibilities were most impressively demonstrated, and a sense of excitement arose from the prospects offered by CBCT. Of great importance was the point made by Dr Miles that having all this detailed information available on the periphery of the area being targeted, placed enormous responsibility on the clinician not to miss pathology in areas with which he might be unfamiliar. Therefore, not only for ethical reasons, but especially also medicolegal consequences, the intimate involvement of a radiologist to scrutinise and report on such scans was emphasised. As a ‘going home message’, this aspect ranks in importance with the fact that CBCT gives information comparable to conventional CT at a fraction of the radiation exposure, something especially important in the paediatric patient group. Professor Leon Janse van Rensburg then gave highly informative and entertaining talks on his own experiences with CBCT, and the lessons he learnt (and is still learning!) in this most promising and challenging new field. In all, this was a superlative learning experience and introduction to an exciting advance in radiological imaging, and the RSSA is congratulated on its contribution in promoting responsible use of a new diagnostic tool. South African Society of Paediatric Imaging (SASPI) report Vicci du Plessis Grey’s Hospital, Pietermaritzburg We are proud to announce that the highly successful RSSA/SASPI Paediatric Imaging Congress in November 2012 drew 328 delegates and boosted SASPI membership from 36 to 107. Report on SPR and WFPI annual meetings − 2013 The 56th Annual Meeting and Postgraduate Course of the Society of Pediatric Radiology (SPR) were held in May in San Antonio, Texas. Of the 590 delegates, 6 were from Africa, of whom 4 were proudly South African. The SPR Postgraduate Course outlined the current practice of paediatric imaging, covering basic principles, clinical applications and new frontiers in various subspecialties. There were dedicated sessions for cardiac, chest, interventional, gastrointestinal, genitourinary, neuroradiology, nuclear medicine, education and fetal imaging. At the scientific sessions, SASPI members Nasreen Mohammed and Savvas Andronikou presented papers in the Chest and Neuroradiology categories respectively. Dr James Downing, Scientific Director of St Jude Children’s Research Hospital, presented this year’s innovative Neuhauser Lecture on the impact of genomic profiles on diagnosing and treating paediatric cancers. Among the prestigious award recipients at the congress was our very own SASPI Chairman, Professor Savvas Andronikou, who received honorary membership of the SPR. As SASPI Vice-Chair and Secretary, respectively, Jaishree Naidoo and Vicci du Plessis represented South Africa at the annual meeting of the World Federation of Paediatric Imaging (WFPI). The WFPI is a non-profit organisation that provides an international platform for paediatric radiology societies united to address the challenges in global paediatric imaging training and the delivery of services. At the meeting, the President’s and Treasurer’s Annual Report were presented, which included feedback on education, outreach and training in lower- resource settings and child imaging safety. The report on outreach in lower-resource settings was presented by Savvas Andronikou, Chair of the WFPI Outreach & Training Committee. He gave an update on the voluntary tele-reporting initiative at Khayelitsha Hospital, Cape Town, and new outreach movements in Haiti, India, Liberia and Mozambique. He also put forward the justifications and strategy for the establishment of an international TB network, an upcoming and exciting new venture in paediatric imaging outreach. The SASPI co-executive committee extend heartfelt thanks to the RSSA, including the CME trustees, administrators, CEO and President, the SPR, the WFPI and of course SASPI for affording us the unique and valuable opportunity to attend SPR 2013. The experience not only allowed us to improve our knowledge in paediatric radiology, but also to strengthen ties with international colleagues, with a view to keeping South African radiologists involved in future paediatric imaging activities and outreach projects. Paediatric radiology roadshow As a SASPI initiative, paediatric radiologists Savvas Andronikou, Jaishree Naidoo and Tanyia Pillay will visit 2 centres in KwaZulu-Natal, and present series of lectures at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli Community Hospital in Durban and at Grey’s Hospital in Pietermaritzburg on 26th and 27th August 2013, and will also spend ‘hands-on’ time in the radiology departments, assisting with paediatric ultrasound and fluoroscopy procedures, and interpreting radiographs and MRI cases. Professor Savvas Andronikou receiving the honorary SPR membership award, with Kassa Darge and Sue Kaste (SPR President).